Steam Reforming Research Articles

Co–Fe/Al2O3 catalyst for low-temperature steam reforming of phenol for hydrogen production

In this study, a series of high-efficient catalyst, Co–Fe/Al2O3, were synthesized via the sol-gel method for low-temperature phenol steam reforming (PSR). The optimized catalyst, 15Co–2Fe/Al2O3, exhibited a remarkable phenol conversion of 95.3%, a H2 yield of 92.1% at 450 °C, GHSV = 7500 h−1 and a steam-to-carbon (S/C) ratio of 10. Furthermore, the catalyst activity was maintained for 660 min before a gradual decline was observed. The NH3-TPD analysis revealed that the addition of Fe enhanced the surface acidity of the catalyst, providing more active sites for phenol adsorption and activation. This study aims to address the challenges associated with high reaction temperatures and poor catalyst stability in PSR. Various characterization techniques have been employed to investigate the reaction mechanisms of bimetallic catalysts in low-temperature PSR.

Exploring the superior mild temperature performance of nickel-infused fibrous titania silica for enhanced dry reforming of methane

Carbon (IV) oxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. One potential approach for reducing their environmental impact is transforming these gases into synthesis gas (CO + H2). This study illustrates the advancement of catalysts supported by fibrous titania silica (FTS), which have nickel loadings of 1%, 3%, and 5%. The FTS support, a modified variant of silica-titania, has a distinct fibrous structure and exhibits mesoporous material properties such as a type IV isotherm and an H1 hysteresis loop. After 72 h of operation, the 1Ni/FTS catalyst converted over 80% of CH4 and CO2 with low coke deposition, outperforming other catalysts. The bare FTS support had reduced CH4 conversion at 600°C, CO2 conversion at 650°C, and H2/CO ratio at 700°C. However, the 5Ni/FTS and 3Ni/FTS catalysts showed consistent increases in CH4 conversion at 600°C. The 1Ni/FTS catalyst, with a pore size of 7.39 nm, had strong metal-support interaction and moderate basicity sites, which helped with reactant dissociation and coke gasification. Despite the slightly higher CH4 conversion of the 3Ni/FTS catalyst and the high basicity of the 5Ni/FTS catalyst, the 1Ni/FTS catalyst demonstrated superior thermal stability and coking resistance, as evidenced by negligible weight loss during TGA analysis. Raman shifts revealed the presence of carbon synthesis and the buildup of disordered amorphous carbon. The Id/Ig ratios of FTS, 1Ni/FTS, 3Ni/FTS, and 5Ni/FTS were 1.01, 0.98, 1.01, and 1.01, respectively. The lower Id/Ig ratio of 1Ni/FTS suggests less disorder. The FTS support promises mild-temperature, carbon-neutral CH4 reforming with long-term catalytic applications. This study demonstrates the efficacy of FTS-supported catalysts in constructing long-term and efficient systems for converting greenhouse gasses.

Catalyst breakthroughs in methane dry reforming: Employing machine learning for future advancements

Rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) have sparked the interest of researchers in resolving this issue. Various technologies have been utilized such as dry reformation of methane (DRM), that turns these greenhouse gases (GHGs) into syngas. Numerous studies have been done in recent years to produce efficient and competitive catalysts for DRM. However, a “state of the art” review is still required due to a lack of literature on improvements and scalability of robust catalytic systems. This study aims to evaluate recent advancements in catalyst formulations, their activities, stability, and selectivity. We have discussed a variety of materials, including Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOF), a type of two-dimensional transition metal carbides and nitrides (MXene), reducible and irreducible metal oxides, transition metal oxides, zeolites, carbon, and biochar-based catalysts, which are responsible for improving the effectiveness of the DRM process. Furthermore, machine learning (ML) approaches are highlighted for their potential in catalyst design and optimization, providing increased accuracy and efficiency. This review highlights major enhancements to the DRM method, which result in higher hydrogen yield and catalyst stability. Novel catalysts have been created to tackle crucial problems including coking and sintering, which are necessary to progress commercialization. To ensure successful commercial application, future research should concentrate on finding catalysts with excellent features that are also economically viable. This study provides a significant resource for future catalyst development and promotes greater cooperation between academic and commercial communities.

Stability performance of an Algerian Ni/purified diatomite catalyst in the dry reforming methane reaction: characterization and properties

AbstractThis work aims to characterize and study the properties of an Algerian diatomaceous earth (Sig-Mascara) as a catalyst carrier. A commercial product of diatomite was characterized by granulometric analysis, X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis/differential scanning calorimetry and scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy methods. To purify the diatomite and remove the impurities (iron oxides, clay minerals, quartz and organic matters), the <63 μm fraction of the diatomite was separated out. The 15Ni/Ds-700 catalyst has lower SiO2, Al2O3 and CaO contents compared with the original diatomite. The NiO content of the catalyst is 15 wt.%, indicating successful impregnation. According to the nitrogen sorption–desorption results, the specific surface area of the purified diatomite particles (<63 μm) increased from 26.47 to 46.33 m2 g–1 compared to crude diatomite. The 15Ni/Ds-700 catalyst was applied in the dry reforming of methane to obtain synthesis gas (CO and H2). The results showed that the catalyst was relatively stable during catalytic measurements for 6 h, although the conversion rate value was low (12%).

Self-regenerative Ni/SiO2 for dry reforming of methane (DRM): 1000 h-longevity assessment and operando insights to coke removal under N2 atmosphere

Commercializing Ni-catalyst for dry reforming of methane (DRM) has yet to be realized due to two known issues: catalyst sintering and carbon deposition. Significantly, our developed tremella-like Ni/SiO2 has previously demonstrated outstanding resilience against sintering under prolonged heat exposure. The carry-on investigation herein further showcases its interesting self-regenerative behavior, which enables carbon removal and full activity restoration under inert N2-blanket. Better still, the resultant N2-regenerated Ni/SiO2 can immediately re-apply to DRM, contrasted to the traditional oxidative-regenerated counterpart that mandated intermediate reduction process for catalyst re-activation. Characterization results indicate that an appreciable portion (32.05 %) of deposited Ni (7.3 wt%) is reducible into active metallic phase; however, only 1.233 % of them are resided on the surface of Ni/SiO2 and involved in DRM. Despite such low involvement rate, >90 % CO2 and CH4 conversion could still be attained initially, reasonably due to the morphological prominence of the catalyst. Longevity experiment confirmed the adequacy of intermittent N2-regeneration in removing deposited carbonaceous, mechanistically assisted by the labile O-atom migrated from SiO2 support. Upon 4 h N2-regeneration, thorough activity restoration of Ni/SiO2 can be facilely realized, thereafter sustaining DRM for 1000 h with CO2 conversion controlled at > 78 %. The results herein provide important insights to DRM community, where the demonstrated N2-self-regeneration process promises a reduction-free, time- and cost-saving solution to DRM catalysts beyond Ni/SiO2.

Study on K-modified Ca-based dual-functional materials for carbon capture and in-situ methane dry reforming

Integrated carbon capture and in-situ methane dry reforming (ICCU-DRM) is a promising technology for chemical looping transformation, this process involves the sequential switching of feedstocks within a single reactor, allowing CO2 capture to occur before methane dry reforming without direct CO2-CH4 contact. However, a significant challenge in the ICCU-DRM process is the disparity between the optimal temperatures required for carbon capture and dry reforming, with the latter necessitating considerably higher temperatures. This could lead to substantial CO2 losses when the reaction temperature is elevated to the optimal level for dry reforming. To address this issue and improve CO2 conversion efficiency, this study explores K doping in synthesizing a dual-functional material, NiCa1.6K0.4@Al2O3, through extrusion-spheronization. The synthesized material exhibits a stable pore structure and a large internal surface area, crucial for enhancing CO2 capture. The optimum temperature for DRM is around 800 °C. Notably, the formation of 1K2Ca(CO3)2 during the calcination of NiCa1.6K0.4@Al2O3, with a thermal decomposition temperature of approximately 800°C, plays a crucial role in minimizing CO2 release during the heating process, thereby significantly improving the CO2 conversion. To evaluate the impact of K doping on the material, the samples were subjected to carbon capture at 650 °C and dry reforming of methane at 750 °C. The results showed that the CO2 conversion rate of NiCa1.6K0.4@Al2O3 reached 52.8%, compared to only 18.9% for NiCa2@Al2O3 under the same conditions. Moreover, this study also investigates the impact of carbon capture temperature, dry reforming temperature, and catalytic metal loading on the performance of the ICCU-DRM process.

Regulating crystal phase of TiO2 to enhance catalytic activity of Ni/TiO2 for solar-driven dry reforming of methane

Ni/TiO2 catalyst is widely employed for photo-driven DRM reaction while the influence of crystal structure of TiO2 remains unclear. In this work, the rutile/anatase ratio in supports was successfully controlled by varying the calcination temperature of anatase-TiO2. Structural characterizations revealed that a distinct TiOx coating on the Ni nanoparticles (NPs) was evident for Ni/TiO2-700 catalyst due to strong metal-support interaction. It is observed that the TiOx overlayer gradually disappeared as the ratio of rutile/anatase increased, thereby enhancing the exposure of Ni active sites. The exposed Ni sites enhanced visible light absorption and boosted the dissociation capability of CH4, which led to the much elevated catalytic activity for Ni/ TiO2-950 in which rutile dominated. Therefore, the catalytic activity of solar-driven DRM reaction was significantly influenced by the rutile/anatase ratio. Ni/TiO2-950, characterized by a predominant rutile phase, exhibited the highest DRM reactivity, with remarkable H2 and CO production rates reaching as high as 87.4 and 220.2 mmol/(g·h), respectively. These rates were approximately 257 and 130 times higher, respectively, compared to those obtained on Ni/TiO2-700 with anatase. This study suggests that the optimization of crystal structure of TiO2 support can effectively enhance the performance of photothermal DRM reaction.

Effect of cobalt on the activity of nickel-based/magnesium-substituted hydroxyapatite catalysts for dry reforming of methane

The dry reforming of methane (DRM) reaction can directly convert methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) into syngas (H2+CO), which is a promising method for achieving carbon neutralization. In this study, a series of 3Ni-xCo/Mg1HAP alloy catalysts with different ratios were synthesized by the coprecipitation method, and the optimum Ni/Co ratio for the DRM reaction was studied. A series of characterization methods revealed that after Co was added, the formation of Ni–Co alloys increased the interactions between metals. However, an excess of Co inhibits the entry of Ni into the lattice of Mg1HAP, resulting in metal accumulation on the surface of the support. In addition, the introduction of Co improves the dispersion of Ni metal, which endows the catalyst with better catalytic activity and stability. Raman spectroscopy of the catalyst after the stability test showed that the addition of Co reduced the proportion of graphitic carbon, which was also the main reason for its improved stability.

High purity H2 resource from methanol steam reforming at low-temperature by spinel CuGa2O4 catalyst for fuel cell

Methanol steam reforming (MSR) is an effective way to provide high purity hydrogen for PEMFCs, however the main challenge is the toxic effect of CO. In this study, CuGa2O4 spinel catalyst was applied first for MSR at low temperature. The properties of catalysts were characterized by various techniques, the MSR catalytic performance was also studied in deeply. The surface of the catalyst is composed of particle chains that are interconnected, forming high-volume pores that increase the specific surface area. The catalyst also has a rich porous structure, exposing more active sites. Furthermore, the presence of oxygen vacancies facilitates the adsorption of reactive oxygen species, reducing CO generation. A possible pathway for methanol dehydrogenation has been determined using DFT calculations. The relatively low overall energy barrier on the catalyst surface facilitates methanol activation. Among the steps, formaldehyde dehydrogenation is the rate-determining step in the methanol dehydrogenation process. The CuGa2O4 catalyst exhibits good gas selectivity, with a hydrogen selectivity of 98 % and CO selectivity of 0. and no deactivation occurred within 50 h, demonstrating outstanding durability. These features allow it to serve as an efficient catalyst for MSR online hydrogen production and direct supply to PEMFCs.

Metal redispersion strategy for regeneration of sepiolite derived Co-phyllosilicate catalyst during glycerol steam reforming

Metal sintering and coke deposition have become main and irreversible obstacles for catalyst deactivation during H2 production from glycerol steam reforming (GSR). The regenerability of 15Co/SEP catalyst with a phyllosilicate derived strong metal-support interaction (SMSI) was probed by five successive GSR/regeneration cycles in order to evaluate the deactivation process and initial reactivity recovery. Two different regeneration methods were selected for the cycles: redox regeneration and combined regeneration. After the combined regeneration, reproducible GSR behaviors were obtained among the whole cycles. An almost recovery of initial activity (∼94 % of conversion and ∼ 73 % of H2 yield) and 50 h stability was noticed at 15Co/SEP-5 catalyst. By various characterizations analysis of fresh and spent catalysts, it was observed that irreversible metal sintering was aggravated by the redox regeneration, thus provoked initial activity loss and accelerated coking deactivation tendency. The combined regeneration achieved phyllosilicate recrystallization and metal exsolution/redispersion by a combination of NH4F-HNO3 assisted recrystallization and redox treatments, which ensured a small increase in Co0 nanoparticle size (13.2 nm vs. 15.3 nm) and coke deposition (23.9 wt% vs. 27.3 wt%) and inconspicuous change in the C1 species selectivity. The results suggested that 15Co/SEP catalyst is a promising candidate for commercialized GSR due to the favorable regenerability.

Plasma‐catalytic one‐step steam reforming of methane to methanol: Revealing the catalytic cycle on Cu/mordenite

Plasma‐catalytic one‐step steam reforming of methane to methanol: Revealing the catalytic cycle on Cu/mordenite

Dry Reforming of Methane to Syngas Mediated by Rhodium-Cobalt Oxide Cluster Anions Rh2CoO.

Dry reforming of methane (DRM) to syngas is an important route to co-convert CH4 and CO2. However, the highly endothermic nature of DRM induces the thermocatalysis to commonly operate at high temperatures that inevitably causes coke deposition through pyrolysis of methane. Herein, benefiting from the mass spectrometric experiments complemented with quantum chemical calculations, we have discovered that the bimetallic oxide cluster Rh2CoO- can mediate the co-conversion of CH4 and CO2 at room temperature giving rise to two free H2 molecules and two adsorbed CO molecules (COads). The only elementary step requiring the input of external energy (e.g., high temperature) is desorption of COads from the reaction intermediate Rh2CoOC2O2-. The doping effect of Co has also been clarified that the Co could tune the charge distribution and orbital energy of the active metal Rh, enabling the enhancement of cluster reactivity toward C-H activation, which is essential to facilitating the DRM to syngas. This work not only underlines the importance of temperature control over elementary steps in practical thermocatalysis but also identifies a promising active species containing the late 3d transition metal to drive DRM to syngas. The findings could provide novel insights into design of bimetallic catalysts for co-conversion of CH4 and CO2 at low temperatures.

Synthesis of bentonite-supported Ni, La, and Ca catalysts for hydrogen production through steam reforming of acetic acid

In this study, the production of hydrogen-rich gas through the steam reforming of acetic acid using bentonite-supported catalysts was investigated. Bentonite was treated by washing and calcination. Bentonite-supported Ni, Ca, La, Ni–La, and Ni–Ca catalysts with different active metal loadings of 10 and 30 wt% were synthesized using the wet impregnation method. The catalysts were characterized using XRD, XRF, SEM, EDS, BET, FT-IR, NH3-TPD, and Raman. The activity tests of the catalysts were carried out in a continuous flow tubular reactor at various temperatures (500, 600, 700, and 800 °C). Product gas composition was determined by gas chromatography (μ-GC). The effect of bentonite treatment, active metal type, and bimetallic combinations (Ni/Bent, Ni/Bent*, La/Bent, Ca/Bent, Ni–La/Bent, and Ni–Ca/Bent) were studied. The highest hydrogen yield obtained without a catalyst was 8.61% at 700 °C. This yield increased to 74.5% at 600 °C with 30 wt% Ni–La/Bentonite, and to 42.6% with 30 wt% Ni/Bentonite catalysts, respectively. The experimental results show that bentonite has a suitable catalytic activity on its own and is a promising support material for the steam reforming of acetic acid.

Sustainable waste-to-hydrogen energy conversion through face mask waste gasification integrated with steam methane reformer and water-gas shift reactor

The burgeoning environmental crisis and the urgent need for sustainable energy solutions underscore the importance of innovative waste-to-energy conversion technologies. This study aims to an efficient utilize of face mask waste for a novel energy system to address waste management and energy production simultaneously by introducing an integrated system comprising a gasifier reactor, steam methane reformer, and water-gas shift reactor, designed to convert face mask waste into a hydrogen-rich syngas. The gasifier reactor initiates the process with a hydrogen flow rate of 2.352 mol/h, which is subsequently enriched to 5.405 mol/h in the steam methane reformer and further to 6.132 mol/h in the water-gas shift reactor, marking a cumulative increase of 160%. Methane content, initially at 2.017 mol/h, is reduced by 38.4% post-reforming and remains stable through the water-gas shift reaction. Carbon monoxide sees a significant reduction from 0.8558 mol/h to 0.1817 mol/h, a decrease of 78.8%. The findings of this study have profound implications for the energy sector, demonstrating the potential of the integrated system to not only mitigate waste but also to produce clean energy efficiently. The substantial increase in hydrogen content across the reactors highlights the system's capability to support the burgeoning hydrogen economy, while the management of carbon oxides aligns with environmental sustainability goals. The value of this study lies in its contribution to the advancement of waste-to-energy technologies and its role in shaping future energy policies and practices.

Steam reforming of dodecane using Ni-red mud catalyst: A sustainable approach for hydrogen production

Conventional energy sources emit huge amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere causing global warming. Hydrogen (H2) is an alternative clean energy carrier that produces only heat and water vapor upon combustion. In this work, we utilized industrial waste material (Red Mud, RM) to develop a cost-effective and efficient catalyst for steam reforming of diesel (n-dodecane as a model compound) for hydrogen production. We impregnated nickel (Ni), a prudent and effective metal, in red mud (RM) in varied proportions to employ as a catalyst for hydrogen production. The catalysts' structure was characterized by powdered X-ray Diffraction (PXRD), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and Electron Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) were used to measure the elemental composition while Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was used to investigate the catalysts’ morphology. Surface area and porosity were analyzed using the N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms, and H2-Temperature Programmed Reduction (H2-TPR) to study the reducibility and interaction of Ni species to the RM. The catalysts were then evaluated for hydrogen production by the steam reforming process of n-dodecane (SRD). It was found that the catalyst with 20% Ni loading (20% Ni@RM) can produce hydrogen with selectivity as high as 75%, and stability for 20 h with a negligible decline in the catalyst performance.

Analysis and optimization of energy conversion for an on-board methanol reforming engine with thermochemical recuperation

Methanol steam reforming (MSR) is a promising method to address the storage and safety issues of hydrogen-fueled engines. This method can also significantly improve engine efficiency by recovering exhaust heat. Additionally, low temperature combustion technology can effectively mitigate the issue of excessively high NOx emissions in hydrogen internal combustion engines. However, research on the integration of low temperature combustion technology with methanol steam reforming is limited, and the design of reformers and strategies for methanol reforming remains underdeveloped. Therefore, a one-dimensional model of the methanol steam reforming engine system was established, and methanol reforming strategies were evaluated under varying engine loads. Further a multi-objective optimization of the reformer was conducted to balance system efficiency and economy. The results indicate that complete methanol reforming is unattainable at mid to high loads due to significant turbo work. A partial methanol reforming strategy, where part of the methanol is directly combusted in the cylinder and the rest is reformed to produce hydrogen, achieves the highest system efficiency. After multi-objective optimization of the reformer, this MSR engine yielded a 5.54% increase in average overall system efficiency under three loads, compared to not using thermochemical recuperation.

Steam Reforming of Tar Impurities from Biomass Gasification with Ni-Co/Mg(Al)O Catalysts—Operating Parameter Effects

The elimination of tar impurities from biomass gasification by catalytic steam reforming can provide clean syngas for downstream biofuel synthesis (Fischer–Tropsch). The effects of key operating parameters in CH4/tar steam reforming were investigated. Ni-Co/Mg(Al)O catalyst performance was tested at model conditions (10/35/25/25/5 wt% CH4/H2/CO/CO2/N2), changing the temperature (650–800 °C), steam-to-carbon ratio (2–5), tar loading (10–30 g/Nm3), and tar composition (toluene, 1-methylenaphthalene, and phenol). Complete tar elimination was achieved under all conditions, at the expense of catalyst deactivation by coke formation. Post-operation coke characterization was obtained with TPO-MS, Raman spectroscopy, and STEM analysis, providing vital insight into coke morphology and location. Critical low-temperature and high-tar loading limits were identified, where rapid deactivation was accompanied by increasing amounts of hard coke species. A coke classification scheme is proposed, including strongly adsorbed surface carbon species (soft coke A), initial scattered carbon filaments (hard coke B1.1), filament clusters and fused filaments (B2), and strongly deactivating bulk encapsulating coke (B3), formed through progressive filament cluster graphitization. High-molecular-weight tar was found to enhance the formation of strongly deactivating metal-particle-encapsulating coke (B1.2). The results contribute to the understanding of coke formation in the presence of biomass gasification tar impurities.

Rapid fabrication of Ni supported MgO-ZrO2 catalysts via solution combustion synthesis for steam reforming of methane for hydrogen production

In this study, we introduced a solution combustion as a simple, efficient, and rapid technique for synthesis of a nanostructured Ni catalyst supported on MgO-ZrO2 for hydrogen production by steam reforming of methane. A series of Ni/MgO-ZrO2 catalysts with different Ni contents were prepared and investigated to observe a suitable Ni loading content. The evaluation of catalytic performance of the as-prepared catalysts was performed in a packed-bed reactor at 700 °C and atmospheric pressure at steam to carbon ratio (S/C) of 2. As a result, the 20Ni/20MgO-ZrO2 catalyst exhibited not only outstanding catalytic performances, but also minimized coke deposits, attributed to the presence of oxygen vacancies of MgO-ZrO2 solid solution. In addition, combustion synthesis could result in formation of NiO-MgO solid solution, boosting uniform dispersion of Ni particles. A durability test of the optimized 20Ni/20MgO-ZrO2 catalyst was conducted at 700 °C for 50 h, revealing a near constant methane conversion of approximately 92.9%. Although filamentous carbon and carbon encapsulation were observed on the surface of spent catalyst, there is no significant negative impact on the steam reforming performance. In conclusion, this present work highlights the efficacy of the solution combustion method for synthesis of nanostructured Ni/MgO-ZrO2 catalysts with superior catalytic performance and less coke deposits for hydrogen production from methane steam reforming.

Advancements in Methane Dry Reforming: Investigating Nickel–Zeolite Catalysts Enhanced by Promoter Integration

A promising method for converting greenhouse gases such as CO2 and CH4 into useful syngas is the dry reformation of methane (DRM). 5Ni-ZSM-5 and 2 wt.% Ce, Cs, Sr, Fe, and Cu-promoted 5Ni-ZSM-5 catalysts are investigated for the DRM at 700 °C under atmospheric pressure. The characterization, including XRD, TPR, TPD, TPO, N2 adsorption–desorption, TGA, TEM, and Raman spectroscopy, revealed that the catalyst’s active sites are distributed throughout the pore channels and on the surface, contributing to the stability of the catalyst. Specifically, the CO2-TPO followed by the O2-TPO experiment using spent catalysts confirmed the oxidizing capacity of CO2 during the DRM reaction. The Ce-promoted catalyst showed the greatest increase in catalytic activity among other catalysts. The 5Ni+2Ce-ZSM-5 catalyst exhibited twice the concentration of acid sites compared to the Cs-promoted counterpart, even though both catalysts achieved similar quantities of active and basic sites. Without compromising H2 and CO selectivity, this finding underscores the crucial role of acid sites in enhancing CH4 and CO2 conversion. With a GHSV of 42,000 mL/(h.gcat), the 5Ni+2Ce-ZSM-5 catalyst demonstrated impressive CH4 conversion rates of 42% at 700 °C and 70% at 800 °C. The reactants spend more time over catalysts during the subsequent reduction of GHSV to 21,000 mL/(h.gcat), resulting in the best catalytic performance with 80% CH4 and 83% CO2 conversions.

Cu0·1In0·01/S-1 catalysts with high efficiency towards methanol steam reforming

Cu0·1/S-1, Cu0·1Zn0·01/S-1, Cu0.1Inx/S-1 (x = 0.01, 0.03, 0.05) and Cu0·1Ce0·01/S-1 were successfully prepared with S-1 as the carrier material and applied to methanol steam reforming (MSR) reaction. To further explore its chemical and physical properties, XRD, BET, SEM-EDS, ICP, FTIR, H2-TPR, NH3-TPD, CO2-TPD, and Raman were used to characterize the synthetic S-1 zeolite catalysts. The measured physicochemical properties revealed that utilizing S-1 zeolite as the carrier effectively altered the size of the metal particles, enhancing their dispersion and reduction characteristics. Compared with five different types of S-1 zeolite catalysts, the Cu0·1In0·01/S-1 catalyst has a large specific surface area and pore size. It exhibited superior active metal dispersion, with the lowest reduction temperature for the active metal CuO. The catalyst also showed a high Lewis acid content on its surface, forming the In-Lewis acid site. Consequently, the Cu0·1In0·01/S-1 catalyst exhibits exceptional performance in methanol steam reforming for hydrogen production reactions. It exhibited the best performance with a methanol conversion rate of 100%, H2 selectivity of 100% under the conditions of 1 MPa, 250 °C, the S/C molar ratio of 2.5, and the WHSV of 0.5 h−1, which outperforms most of the reported catalysts in methanol steam reforming.© 2023 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.